June 21
431: The bishops of the East send a formal letter to Patriarch Cyril of Alexandria demanding the postponement of the Council of Ephesus, because Cyril wanted to open the council without waiting for the arrival of Patriarch John of Antioch, who was supposed to preside over the council but was delayed due to flood. Ignoring the letter, Cyril condemned Patriarch Nestorius of Constantinople for his Christology and ordered John to break communion with him.
1639: Birth of Increase Mather, early American theologian, who published nearly 100 books, and paved the way for ending executions for witchcraft in colonial America.
1821: The formal constitution of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Zion Church in New York City in the presence of nineteen clergymen from six African-American churches.
1834: Cyrus McCormick, a Christian inventor and businessman from Virginia, patents the world’s first functioning reaper. He made a good fortune from it, and contributed much to charity.
1837: Angelina Grimké, an American abolitionist, political activist and women’s rights advocate, addresses a large audience in Boston, Massachusetts, in her attempt to bring many women into active participation in the movement to abolish slavery.
1846: Demise of Isaac McCoy, a missionary to American Indians; he and his family had to endure great privation and hardship in their pioneer life. He was worried about the Indians being corrupted by contact with whites.
1963: Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini is elected Pope and takes the name Paul VI, to become the 261st pontiff in the Catholic Church.
Edited by: T. Chempilayil MCBS
Courtesy: www.studylight.org